Bachelor's Programme in Nursing Programme description

The Bachelor¿s Programme in Nursing is a three-year programme of professional study (180 credits). Students who complete the programme are awarded the degree of Bachelor in Nursing. The programme is based on the national curriculum for the three-year education of nurses and the National Curriculum Regulations adopted by the Ministry of Education and Research on 25 January 2008.

The programme is mainly taught in Sandvika, Kunnskapens Hus, and clinical training is, in general, taken in Bærum municipality. The proximity to Oslo poses continuous challenges to the nursing programme in relation to social and financial differences. This includes substance abuse and mental health disorders, youth-related issues, the increasing number of elderly people and people who live alone, and more criminality, violence and accidents. The challenges of big cities constitute an important and major part of the experience basis students acquire from clinical training. 

Cultural diversity is a reality in all segments of society. This development is particularly visible in the city and surrounding areas, with a more ethnically and culturally complex population. The programme therefore aims to educate nurses who are capable of incorporating this diversity and providing health care in accordance with changes to the need for healthcare and the patients¿ cultural and linguistic background.

The bachelor¿s programme is based on the forefront of research and experience-based knowledge and is run in collaboration with the department¿s research environments and the professional field.

The values of nursing People are in continuous interaction and change, and live in the tension between health, disease, well-being and suffering. Nursing as a profession focuses its efforts on individuals and groups of patients and next of kin, both in the health services and society at large. The main goal is to promote health, treat and rehabilitate patients during and after illness, and to ease suffering.

Care is deemed to be the core of nursing science and the nursing profession. This rests on a holistic perspective on humanity that builds on respect, responsibility, equality, justice, love of humanity and safeguarding people¿s autonomy, integrity and dignity. A holistic human perspective sees people as a whole being made up of physical, mental, social and spiritual dimensions.

The nurse¿s knowledge basis Tending to, caring for and treating people constitute the cornerstones of a nurse¿s competence, according to the national curriculum. The practice of nursing is complex and diverse and must therefore rely on knowledge obtained from several sciences representing different types of knowledge.

Nursing as a profession in the health services Nurses play a key role in the Norwegian health services and form one of several health-related professions. Interdisciplinary cooperation is a precondition for quality in the health services, in addition to good cooperation between different service levels and roles. Nurses are expected to take an open approach to the theoretical and methodological complexity they will encounter in both clinical nursing and research. This includes the use of modern technical equipment, digital communication and computer systems. Nurses should also take a critical and reflective attitude towards power relations, society and health policy.

In general, clinical training is taken in the municipal health service and specialist health service in Bærum municipality. In the municipal health service, the students will encounter health issues related to living near a big city with all this entails of social, cultural and economic divisions. In connection with the Coordination Reform (Report No 47 to the Storting, 2008¿2009), the municipal health service has taken over more responsibility for the treatment and care of people with medical problems. Tasks that were previously assigned to the specialist health service now fall within the municipalities¿ area of responsibility and health service. In order to provide professionally sound healthcare, the municipalities will further improve home treatment and preventive health services.

Relevance to working life A bachelor¿s degree in nursing forms the basis for applying for authorisation as a nurse pursuant to the Norwegian Health Personnel Act, approved by the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs on 2 July 1999, and qualifies candidates to work in all parts of the health services: hospitals, nursing homes, home nursing care, preventive health care, occupational health services, offshore, the ambulance service and international aid organisations.

Relevance to further education The programme qualifies candidates for further education and master¿s degree programmes, both at OsloMet ¿ Oslo Metropolitan University and at other institutions. The programme description consists of a general section that applies to the programme as a whole, followed by descriptions of the individual courses.

The target group for the programme is people who wish to work with those who suffer, or could suffer, from illness or failing health.

The admission requirements are, in accordance with the Regulations for Admission to Higher Education, the Higher Education Entrance Qualification or an assessment of prior learning and work experience.

The nursing programmes at OsloMet ¿ Oslo Metropolitan University also have the following special admission requirements:

• An average grade of 3 or better is required in the subject Norwegian Vg3 (393 hours) from Norwegian upper secondary school (average of all the grades awarded in Norwegian first-choice form, second-choice form and oral).

Applicants who are admitted to the programme must submit a transcript of police records, cf. the Regulations for admission to higher education Chapter 6.L

The use of clothing that covers the face is incompatible with taking the programme. During periods of clinical training, the rules on clothing at the establishment where the training takes place apply.

After completing the bachelor's programme in nursing, the candidate is expected to have achieved the following overall learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and competence:

Knowledge The student:

• has broad knowledge of nursing as a discipline and a profession
• has broad knowledge of research and professional development
• has broad knowledge of quality assurance, organisation and management
• has broad knowledge of health promotion and preventive work, teaching and guidance
• has broad knowledge of health policy priorities and the legal framework for professional practice
• has knowledge of and understands health and illness in a multicultural perspective
• is capable of updating their knowledge in the field of nursing

Skills The student:

• is capable of applying discipline knowledge in their professional nursing practice
• is capable of attending to patients¿ basic needs by observing, assessing, planning, implementing, evaluating and documenting nursing
• masters nursing through an evidence-based approach
• masters relevant professional tools, techniques, procedures and forms of communication
• is capable of reflecting on ethical issues and contributing to discussions that address the needs of patients, next of kin and society for satisfactory health services
• is capable of inter-professional cooperation to create a coordinated, holistic and comprehensive service
• is capable of reflecting on their own practice and adjusting it under supervision

Competence The student:

• is capable of communicating important theories, issues and solutions in the field, both orally and in writing
• is capable of sharing professional opinions and experience to contribute to the development of sound nursing practices
• has insight into relevant academic and professional ethical issues and is capable of applying professional ethical guidelines for nurses

The programme comprises 13 compulsory courses*, which make up a total of 180 credits. The programme can be organised as a full-time course of study over three years with four courses (60 credits) per year. The programme comprises both theory and clinical training. Theoretical studies make up 90 credits, while clinical training accounts for 90 credits. The courses build on each other to ensure progress with increasing requirements for knowledge and understanding of the profession. Each course concludes with a final assessment.

*Students can choose to replace the course SYBAPRA3 Clinical Studies, Health Promotive and Preventive Work with the course International Public Health, which is included in other programmes at the Institute of Health Sciences. The course is taken in the third semester (autumn) and the students¿ course of study will therefore be adapted since the course SYBAPRA3 is taken during a spring semester.

SYBAS2110 starts in the first year of the programme, and the exam must be passed during the course of the second year in order to take the third year of the programme. In the third year, students will take the courses SYBASPRA5A and SYBASPRA6B. The A courses are taken in the autumn semester and the B courses are taken in the spring and have a longer clinical training period.

NATIONAL CURRICULUM The national curriculum divides the nurse¿s knowledge basis into four main topics and provides guidelines as to the credit distribution between these main topics.

Main topic 1: The nurse¿s technical and scientific basis (33 credits) This main topic is intended to contribute to the students¿ understanding of the history, underlying philosophy and professional ethics of the nursing profession.

Main topic 2: The nursing discipline and professional basis (72 credits) This main topic is intended to provide the students with a tool for integrating knowledge from the other main topics, achieve an understanding of how illness manifests both individually and in groups of patients, and practise skills and the will to adapt nursing in relation to what different patients and situations require.

Main topic 3: Medical and natural science topics (45 credits) This main topic is intended to contribute to the students¿ knowledge of normal human anatomy and physiology, pathological conditions and processes, how diagnoses are made and how illness is treated.

Main topic 4: Social science topics (30 credits) This main topic contributes to the students¿ understanding of human development and learning and how people relate to each other in different societies and cultures. The topic is also aimed at increasing understanding of the health services and society.

The following progress requirements apply to the programme:

• All coursework requirements in a course must be met before a student can take the exam in the course.
• The student must have passed all courses in the first year of the programme in order to start the second year of the programme.
• The student must have passed all courses in the second year of the programme in order to start the third year of the programme.

The work and teaching methods used in the programme are based on a sociocultural perspective on learning. This means that students participate in and contribute to a learning community where fellow students, lecturers and others are important aspects of their learning. Students are thereby not only responsible for their own learning but also that of their fellow students.

Work methods that promote evidence-based practice are employed throughout the course. Evidence-based practice means making professional decisions based on systematically obtained research-based knowledge, experience-based knowledge and the patient¿s wishes and needs in a given situation.

Varied work methods that encourage own activity, independence, fresh thinking and reflection are emphasised, and relevant educational learning methods and digital learning resources are used to promote students¿ learning outcomes. Some of the teaching will take place on the Pilestredet campus.

Since the programme will have a small group of students, cooperation between students and between students and staff will be encouraged. Students receive close follow-up, supervision and continuous feedback on where they are in the learning process.

Lectures Lectures are primarily used to introduce new subject matter, give an overview and highlight main elements and links between different topics, and also to communicate relevant issues. Some lectures are given jointly with other study programmes. Most lectures are given in Norwegian, but they can also take place in English. Some lectures can be recorded or streamed and some may be held at the Pilestredet campus.

Written assignments Through written assignments, students will learn theory and develop skills in using and referencing sources, analysis, discussion and written and oral communication. The primary purpose of this is to develop their ability to critically reflect, see elements of nursing in context and develop a deeper understanding of a topic. Written assignments, such as logs, subject notes and more extensive assignments are related to theoretical and clinical courses and are prepared either individually or in cooperation with others.

Group work The students will work in groups both in the theoretical and clinical courses. Group work is used as a teaching method to encourage cooperation between students, support the learning of subject matter and provide training in cooperation and interaction skills. In the groups, students will discuss each other¿s contributions and share knowledge and perspectives. In this way, students will acquire relevant experience on professional work as a nurse as well as contribute to the development of professional expertise, where the ability to assess, develop and disseminate subject matter is a key element.

The groups may be reorganised between each academic year and between the clinical training periods. Each group has a supervisor. The supervisor¿s job is to plan and take part in evaluating individual students¿ and the group¿s learning process.

In the first year of the course, the students sign a contract with the university on how to best undertake the work in order to learn the subject matter. An individual meeting with the supervisor then takes place based on this contract. 

Supervision The purpose of supervision is to improve the student¿s learning process. Supervision can be given before, during and/or after an academic work. The supervision is rooted in the individual student¿s need for advice, clarification and academic discussion. Students are responsible for seeking supervision themselves. Supervision can take place individually or in groups.

Workshops Workshops are a work method where small groups of students work together on given assignments on a specific topic. The lecturer also attends the workshop. The results are presented to fellow students.

Seminars The purpose of seminars is to stimulate each other¿s learning processes and clarify the students¿ own understanding of the discipline through analysis, critical assessment and presentation of subject matter. Small groups of students, or individual students, present a topic for discussion to a bigger group of students and the lecturer. The students are responsible for leading and running the seminar and for delegating responsibility for presenting the subject matter, and acting as opponents and observers.

Role play The purpose of role play is to practise working in a realistic situation in a safe setting, where students are able to receive feedback and reflect on what is happening.

Skills training and simulation Through skills training, students develop skills relating to procedures and become more confident with equipment and instruments in a safe setting.

Skills training through simulation is about creating patient situations that are realistic and true to life. Students will practise dealing with complex professional assessments and actions. The training is sometimes filmed and the video is used for reflection. The video is deleted after this has been done.

Learning pathway A learning pathway is a proposal for a work or reading plan. The learning pathway gives students an opportunity to work on subject matter, either individually or in groups, in a system that provides explanations and new step-by-step challenges. The learning pathway can be worked on several times and at the student¿s own pace.

Educational posters The purpose of an educational poster is to disseminate academic information in a brief and clear format. This is based on an analysis and discussion of messages and the level of the audience the posters are aimed at. A poster therefore contains both text and graphics.

Self-study The programme requires a considerable degree of individual effort and student-active learning.

Clinical training makes up 90 credits and is carried out over a total of 60 weeks. Of these, 50 weeks are related to clinical training in direct contact with patients and next of kin, and cooperation with other health professions. The remaining weeks are spent on skills training at the simulation and skills centre and on preparing for clinical training. See the National Curriculum for Nursing Education 2008, p. 14.

Clinical training is organised as six courses and each is carried out over a period of approx. ten weeks. In the first and second years, students will receive approx. two weeks of preparatory theoretical teaching before embarking on eight weeks¿ clinical training with direct patient contact.

In the third year, students take two clinical training courses. In the autumn semester, students will take surgical training, before which they will receive two weeks of preparatory theoretical teaching and then eight weeks¿ clinical training with direct patient contact. In the spring semester, students will take medical training comprising ten weeks¿ clinical training with direct patient contact.  Parts of medical training will be taken in the municipal health service. Students will acquire knowledge and skills relating to management and inter-professional cooperation in these courses.

Clinical training courses

First year of study:

• SYBASPRA1 Clinical Studies, Basic Nursing ¿ 15 credits, 8 weeks

Second year of study:

• SYBASPRA2 Clinical Studies, Homebased Services ¿ 15 credits, 8 weeks
• SYBASPRA3 Clinical Studies, Health Promotive and Preventive Work ¿ 15 credits, 8 weeks
• SYBASPRA4 Clinical Studies, Mental Health and Substance-Related Disorders ¿ 15 credits, 8 weeks

Third year of study:

• SYBASPRA5A Clinical Studies ¿ Surgery ¿ 15 credits, 8 weeks
• SYBASPRA6B Clinical Studies ¿ Medicine ¿ 15 credits, 10 weeks

Clinical training preparation Students are expected to prepare ahead of each clinical training period. In preparation for each period, teaching sessions will be held at the university, and students are expected to attend these. It is also expected that the students familiarise themselves with the learning outcomes for the course, which also form the basis for midway (formative) and final (summative) assessments in the course, and with the practical information provided in the programme description.

Supervision Clinical training is supervised. A supervisor from the clinical training establishment is responsible for day-to-day supervision, while a supervisor from the university will provide regular follow-up of the student throughout the training period.

Specification of learning outcomes In the course of the first few weeks of each clinical training period, the students must specify the learning outcomes for the clinical training period/course in relation to their own preconditions for learning and the framework at the clinical training establishment in question. This must be approved by the clinical training supervisor and supervisor at the university. These learning outcome descriptions must be concrete, relevant, realistic and measurable.

Written assignments and logs During the course of the clinical training period, the students must write assignments and keep logs or equivalent methods of reflecting on their clinical training. The students will receive written or oral feedback. The assignments and logs are an integrated part of clinical training and form part of the assessment of the student¿s knowledge/competence.

Student BEST ¿ Better and systematic team training During the last year of the programme when the students are to acquire competence in the specialist health service, they will take a learning programme together with students enrolled on OsloMet¿s Advanced Programme in Nurse Anaesthesia and medicine students from the University of Oslo (UiO). The learning programme Student BEST (Better and systematic team training) builds on simulation in teams and is used as a training method in the admission and stabilising of trauma patients. This takes place at the university¿s simulation and skills centre on the Pilestredet campus. The learning programme employs interdisciplinary simulation to achieve its main goal of communication and interaction, where different professions work together in a critical situation. Students are divided into groups of 5¿6 students. The group participants are each allocated a role and must strive to fill this role as a professional practitioner. The simulation day starts with an introductory lecture. The practical exercise lasts 20¿30 minutes, followed by a 30 minute debriefing. The students will take part in four different situations (cases) during the course of the simulation day. The learning programme is an integrated part of clinical training and forms part of the assessment of the student¿s knowledge/competence.

Geographical areas for the clinical training

Nursing education at OsloMet has several campuses. The clinical training take place in a larger geographical area in the Oslo municipality and municipalities / counties around Oslo. This means that students must count on travel paths to and from clinical training.

Shifts Attendance at clinical training totals an average of 30 hours a week. Shifts are to be planned for these periods. Study days must be evenly distributed over the course of the clinical training period. Depending on the clinical training establishment and period, the student should do shifts during the day, evening, night and weekend during the period, and he/she should primarily follow the clinical training supervisor¿s shift arrangements, where possible. The shift plan functions as a contract and cannot be changed without the approval of the supervisor at the university and the clinical training supervisor.

Compulsory attendance and absence from clinical training Students¿ clinical training can only be assessed if their attendance is sufficiently high. It is the student¿s responsibility to ensure that their absence from clinical courses does not exceed the permitted amount. The rules are as follows:

• Less than 10% absence: The student can complete the clinical course as normal.
• 10¿20%: If possible, the student can make up for the clinical training missed. This must be agreed with the clinical training supervisor and the supervisor at the university.
• More than 20% absence: The student must re-take the whole clinical training course.

Illness during clinical training periods If students fall ill and their absence from a clinical course exceeds 20%, a medical certificate is required for all days of absence in excess of 10%. The absence will then be deemed to be valid, and the student will have to re-take the clinical course in its entirety. This will lead to delayed progress in the programme.

Absence without a valid reason If the student does not have a valid reason for absence, the clinical course will be registered as failed and count as an attempt. Students who fail a practical course twice will normally have to leave the programme.

The Department of Nursing and Health Promotion has a well-established cooperation with a number of universities and university colleges in countries both in and outside Europe. The department is also a member of various international networks in the field. A period of study abroad can make an important contribution to academic and personal development; it will provide new challenges in the field, new international contacts, better language skills and insight into other cultures.

Instead of the course Clinical Studies, Health Promotive and Preventive Work, the students can choose to take the International Public Health course (15 credits), which is included in other bachelor¿s degrees at the Faculty of Health Sciences. All classes in this course are taught in English.

Students can take part in international intensive courses in Europe under the Erasmus programme, which is the EU¿s programme for cooperation between higher education institutions in Europe, and in the Nordic countries under the Nordplus framework programme. The courses last from between one and three weeks and are a student exchange where the student meets students from other countries and cooperates on international challenges relating to health issues. Some of the intensive courses are interdisciplinary.

Students can also take clinical training as part of their studies at institutions with which the department has cooperation agreements. This can be done in the second year of the programme in the fourth semester. Students who are going to a country in the South, i.e. Cuba and countries in Africa and Asia, must take part in a compulsory preparatory fieldwork course arranged by the university before departure.

As part of internationalisation at home, the university accepts exchange students through Erasmus and the Nordplus framework programme in the second and third years of the programme. Lecturers from partner institutions in and outside Europe will also give lectures and offer supervision each year. These will be given in English.

Coursework requirements are all types of work/activities/compulsory attendance that are conditions for being permitted to take the exam. The course descriptions specify which coursework requirements apply to each course. The deadline for submitting coursework is set by the person responsible for the course or lecturer.

The purpose of the coursework requirements is to:

• promote progress and academic development in the programme
• encourage students to seek out and acquire new knowledge
• facilitate cooperation and communication on nursing issues

Coursework requirements and compulsory activities in clinical training

All clinical training have different mandatory activities and tasks in the implementation. See chapter on Clinical training. In some clinical courses, there may also be requirements for work requirements and activities that must be approved before a final assessment of the subject can be made.

Assessment of coursework requirements The required coursework is assessed as approved/not approved by the person responsible for the course/lecturer. Fellow students can also participate in providing feedback on some of the coursework.

Validity of required coursework If more than one academic year passes between when a student¿s required coursework is approved and the exam in the course in question, the faculty can require the student to retake the coursework before being permitted to take the exam.

Not approved coursework Normally, students are given three attempts to have coursework approved. If a piece of required coursework is not approved, this may lead to delayed progress in the programme.

As far as possible, the second attempt will be given before the ordinary exam, unless otherwise stated in the course description. The student must agree with the person responsible for the course/lecturer in each individual case.

If a second attempt is impossible due to the nature of the coursework requirements (e.g. attendance requirements or taking a first aid course that is only held once), the person responsible for the course/lecturer will consider whether alternative coursework can be set.

Such alternative work has in the past been set in the form of a written assignment, a video recording or similar to demonstrate that the student possesses the knowledge specified in the coursework requirement.

A third and final attempt is normally given before resit and rescheduled exams.

Valid absence documented by e.g. a medical certificate does not exempt students from meeting the coursework requirements.

Students will encounter different forms of assessment during the programme. The forms of assessment are intended to ensure a continuous process towards a twofold objective: to promote learning and document that the student has achieved the learning outcomes. By giving the student qualified feedback in relation to both processes and products, the information about the competence achieved can motivate the student¿s further efforts and identify whether the forms of learning should be adjusted.

Formative assessment (midway assessment) is carried out in the study groups, the simulation and skills centre, project groups and during clinical training.

The summative assessments (product assessments) that take place at the end of each course are based on the learning outcomes for the course, and on whether the student has achieved the planned learning outcomes.

The assessments are carried out in accordance with the Act relating to Universities and University Colleges, the Regulations relating to Studies and Examinations, and the guidelines for appointment and use of examiners at the university.

Assessment The grading system in use is pass/fail or a grade scale with letter grades from A to F, where A is the highest grade, E is the poorest pass grade and F is a fail. In connection with group exams, all students in the group are awarded the same grade.

Resit and rescheduled exams Resit and rescheduled exams are carried out in the same manner as the ordinary exam unless otherwise specified in the course description. In special cases, resit and rescheduled exams in courses with group exams may be held as individual exams.

Appeals against grades Grades awarded for written exams can be appealed. It is not possible to appeal the grades awarded for oral and practical exams. In connection with group exams, the result of an appeal will only have consequences for the candidate(s) who submitted the appeal. The other students will keep their original grade.

Assessment of clinical training Students are subject to formative assessment on a continuous basis in all the clinical courses. The assessment is intended to provide advice and guidance by determining progress, helping to improve strengths and drawing attention to areas the student needs to continue to work on. It should take account of the student's preconditions for learning, framework conditions at the clinical training establishment, the learning outcomes in the course, and the student¿s specification of the learning outcomes through their own learning plans and logs.

A summative assessment takes place midway and at the end of each clinical course. The assessments are based on the learning outcomes for the course, the student's specification of the learning outcomes and the formative assessment made of the student during the clinical training period.

Clinical training is assessed as pass/fail by a representative of the professional field and a representative of the university. The final decision on whether to award a pass or fail grade is made by the university.

Clinical training assessment forms The assessment form the previous clinical training period must be shown to the supervisors (contact lecturer and clinical training supervisor) at the next clinical training period. The student is responsible for keeping and including the assessment form for the next clinical training period.

Transfer discussion If necessary, the student can be called in for a discussion with the previous and new supervisor prior to a clinical training period. In some cases, the programme coordinator and a representative of the Section for Academic Affairs may also attend.

External programme supervisor

An external programme supervisor scheme exists for the programme as required by the Guidelines for Appointment and Use of Examiners at the university. The duties of the external programme supervisor are to:

• assess the connections between the programme description's learning outcomes, teaching and types of assessment
• give the academic environments/faculties feedback and advice that can be used in the ongoing work on programme quality.

SUITABILITY ASSESSMENT

Suitability assessments of all students are carried out on a continuous basis throughout the study programme. A suitability assessment is a comprehensive assessment of the student¿s academic and personal qualifications for work as a health care or social worker. A student who represents a potential threat to the life, physical or mental health, rights and security of patients is not suited to the profession. Students who are deemed unsuitable for the profession will be excluded from the programme.